Namibia

Namibia, a large and sparsely populated country on Africa's south-west coast, has enjoyed stability since gaining independence in 1990 after a long struggle against rule by South Africa.

. According to scientists, Namib Desert is over 55 million years old! The desert is also quite large, stretching for 2000 km along the Atlantic coasts of Namibia, South Africa and Angola.

. The Gibeon meteorite shower occurred in prehistoric times in the central part of Namibia. It covered an elliptical area of 275 by 100 km. Remains from this meteorite shower are exhibited at Windhoek, Namibia's capital city.

. The San have resided in the country for more than 6,000 years, and there is more than enough rock art to confirm this.

. At the Cheetah Conservation in Namibia, you can run across one of the 3,000 or so free-roaming cheetahs in the country.

. The Fish River Canyon, located close to the border with South Africa, is also the oldest in the world. Researchers have determined that the canyon was formed at least 500 million years ago through water and wind erosion, coupled with the collapse of the valley floor.

. A large number of sailors have died at this coast, given the dense fog and the violent storms in the area. In the 1940’s, a slate was discovered along with human skeletons. The slate was written by a survivor and directed anyone who found it north. Unfortunately, the wreck had happened close to a century earlier.

. Under the South African rule, the country used the rand to transact and only started using the Namibian dollar after independence. Currently, both currencies are acceptable in the country.

. The Himba tribe in the Kunene region of the country have strongly clung to their traditional ways and beliefs. They wear traditional clothes, eat traditional foods and even practice traditional religions. The women wear skirts and leave their upper body bare. Basically, they have been unaffected by modernism in any way.

Namibia, a large and sparsely populated country on Africa's south-west coast, has enjoyed stability since gaining independence in 1990 after a long struggle against rule by South Africa.

1. Namibia's capital city is Windhoek

2. Namibia is one of the youngest countries in the world, having achieved independence from South Africa on March 21, 1990.

3. Celebrities Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie chose to give birth to their daughter Shiloh in Namibia in 2006. The couple also donated US$2 million to the Namibia Wildlife Sanctuary.

4. The San of Namibia are the world's oldest surviving hunter-gatherers. By the age of 12, most San children are able to identify 200 species of plant, while many adults can identify over 300.

5. Namibia's first UNESCO World Heritage Site, Twyfelfontein, is home to over 2,500 cave paintings and carvings on 212 slabs of rock and 13 panels, some of which are almost 6,000 years old.

6. Himba women of Namibia cover their skin with a mixture of ocher, butter, and resin from omuzumba shrubs for protection from the sun, giving their skin a reddish hue.

7. The Hoba meteorite in Namibia is the world's largest known single meteorite, weighing over 119,050 pounds.

8. Fish River Canyon in Namibia is disputably the second largest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon in Arizona, depending on how the rank is determined. While Fish River Canyon is 1,640 feet deep, 100 miles long, and 17 miles wide, the Blue Nile Gorge in Ethiopia, for example, is 3,200 feet deep and 250 miles long, but only 12 miles wide.

The time-consuming and bureaucratic procedures for urban land planning, development, approval and delivery will soon be reduced after proposals to decentralise the processes were made. Urban development minister Sophia Shaningwa this week introduced the urban and regional bill in parliament aimed at decentralising the bulk of the spatial planning functions from central government to recognised planning authorities. Once enacted, the proposed law will replace the existing regulations dealing with urban planning. These are the Township Planning Ordinance of 1954, and the Township and Division of Land Ordinance of 1963.

It was in the late-nineties when former Namibian President, Sam Nujoma, began discussions around the initial plans for the US$618m twin projects at the port town of Walvis Bay. Fast-forward two decades, to July 2017, and there is a sense of anxiety as Namibia Ports Authority (Namport) CEO Bisey Uirab and port engineer Elzevir Gelderbloem, wait to receive their guest. At 88, the visitor to the port still looks sharp, a bit shorter than he did during the liberation struggle as he led the country towards independence in 1990. What is still the same is his signature infectious smile, broad and welcoming. You would mistake him to be the host. Nujoma is in town to visit the sites of the new container terminal and oil storage facility at the Port of Walvis Bay.